At the conclusion of the workday, they all gathered in Dr. Lockben's office. Beth had never visited St. Ninian's university before. To the teenage squirrel, the stone buildings with their faint pink hues appeared more like castles than institutes of education. The old hare's office was also a wonder to behold. The walls were lines in oak paneling and inset bookcases. Rows upon rows of barkcloth bound texts lined each shelf. Each book was shiny with the special sap resin used to preserve the bindings. Anxiously sitting at his desk, Lockben watched as Captain Tussock unlocked the case containing the ancient document. Everybeast seemed to hold their breath as Lockben donned the special white gloves and turned open the cover. Wally regretted that Bulfie would be absent for this exciting moment. The ferret hadn't responded to a single one of his messages. Wally could only presume whatever it was that had called his friend away had been most important.
Lockben's heart seemed to be skipping several beats as he adjusted his glasses and glanced over the writing. The script was quite old, as was to be expected, and it was written in the Old Woodland. For a learned scholar like Lockben, it offered little trouble. What did trouble him, was Wally and Dan hovering in his light. His whiskers twitched in annoyance.
"Do you chaps think you could stand back a bit?" He spoke trying not to reprimand the excited pair.
Squirrel and otter took a pace back still straining to catch glimpses. The pages turned slowly, the hare worked gingerly knowing how fragile the book truly was. Part way through he discovered a loose sheet. It was written in an entirely different script from the rest. With his ears standing straight up Lockben announced, "This is it. By Jove, this must be it."
Forgetting the previous request Wally and Dan crowded in again. This time they were joined by Captain Tussock, and Jennifer who had also tagged along. Beth sat across watching the adults all scrambling to catch sight of the paper. Clearing her throat she asked. "What's it say Dr. Lockben, could you read it out to me?" She wasn't about to crowd in there, so she fluttered her eyelashes sweetly looking for all the world the charming inquisitive maiden.
It worked, the old hare was happy to oblige. Unfortunately for Beth, rather than just relate the information, he turned it into a lesson. Unlike her father and Wally, Lockben could be in a word, dry.
"Well, you see young miss. This particular document is not written in the same paw as the rest. Also, towards the bottom it is signed. "He squinted at the signature. "Hmm, L. T. Morio" It took him but a moment to uncover the meaning of the initials. "Ah, Lieutenant Morio. Must have been the chaps rank and name. "He mused a moment longer glancing over the text. "When you get a look at this young'un there are some absolutely brilliant examples of spelling differentials. Y'see the language wasn't formalized until many centuries later. As result most beasts tended to spell things phonetically, we see a lot of dialect written into the works of moles and hares in particular. "
He paused again, and allowed Dan and Wally to take a few quick glances over. "Isn't this just a wealth of knowledge? If this beast was here today I'd jolly well kiss him so I would. Look here, the names and descriptions of two hundred and eighty-three woodland volunteers. Not to mention the names of twelve patrol hares."
To Beth's delight, he finally began to read extracts from the document.
"Name: Arven Squirrel
Occupation: Warrior of Redwall
Description upon enlisting: Red squirrel, average height, muscular build, in good health and sturdy resolve.
Name: Bogwill Streamer
Occupation: Fisherbeast
Description upon enlisting: River otter, short stature, portly build, well past middle seasons.
Name: Moss Riverdriver
Occupation: Carpenters apprentice
Description upon enlisting: River otter, average height, small build, in thirteenth season, permission to enlist granted by mother, shows promising skill with sling. "
Beth listened as the names and descriptions were read out. "Thirteen?" She piped up. Lockben paused in his reading and nodded. "Yes of course, a beast was considered near grown at that age. Not like today. "
The teenage squirrel thought on this a moment. She was but sixteen and she didn't feel anywhere near grown. Whatever was this young otter thinking to go on to war? All the thirteen season-olds she knew were nothing but spoiled brats. She couldn't fathom having the maturity to undertake such a task.
Lockben then turned his attentions back to the book. "See here, the Salamandastron records of the five-hundred odd beasts sent to march, many new recruits by the looks of it. " He silently read along until he came to the list they wanted. "Casualties of the Battle of a Thousand." He read the title out loud. A hush fell over the room as Lockben scanned through the names.
"Furgale- Fourteen seasons, Officers clerk, No known next of kin
Reeve Starbuck- Fourteen seasons, Runner, Father and Mother at Salamandastron
Lieutenant Morio- Twenty seven seasons, Patrol Quartermaster, Sister at Salamandastron, Niece on Patrol."
He continued to read through, pausing re-reading sections. Wally took a seat saying. "Well, one mystery is solved." The others glanced curiously towards him. "We found a lieutenant early on in the dig. Must be this Morio fella."
There were several nods of agreement. "Given the level of detail, it shouldn't be hard to put names with many of the remains. " Dan added. This news was most welcomed by the Long Patrol Captain. "My word, that would be absolutely splendid."
Beth watched with growing boredom as the adults continued to converse about the old documents. At first they had seemed exciting to the youth. Now they were just plain boring, and she regretted tagging along. Wally, having teenagers of his own, knew the tell tale signs. The heavy sighs, crossed arms, and the eye rolls. Not to mention the occasional glances of distain. Oh the joys of adolescence, one moment excited about everything, the next terribly uninterested. He himself was counting down the days for when his own children grew up, and their brains fully developed enough to act like sensible creatures. He stood and offered Beth an alternative solution.
"How's about y'make a snug berth in me office? I got a computer and what not. No doubt y'can entertain yerself that way for a spell."
Beth all but leaped to her foot paws. Trying not to laugh Wally showed her to his office. It was only around the corner. Far smaller than that of Dr. Lockben's, Wally's office was in a state of disarray. Unmarked papers from the distance course he was teaching sat in a pile, mixed in with news paper clippings, receipts, and other dig related documents. He hastily removed a pile of books from his desk chair, and rolled it on the small patch of bare floor. "Here y'go." He smiled.
Beth looked around, wondering if the varying piles would tumble upon her. "Umm... thanks." She mustered up a smile.
The otter logged her in to his work computer, and then made his leave. "Don't download nothing that will get me fired." He winked, knowing she would never do such a thing.
What had started as an evening of boring history lessons, quickly turned into a night of short, but pointlessly funny YouTube videos.